I was just thinking about how seriously lame this generation of gaming has been so far.

Microsoft has spent the entire year backtracking from bad decision after bad decision: Trying to kill the used game market, always-connected console, mandatory Kinect, overpriced system, ugly VGR design, etc, etc. They couldn't do anything right. Who was in charge of this Xbox division? Any real gamer could have seen this disaster brewing a mile away.

Nintendo actually has a very good console, but their marketing campaign (if it even exists) has been horrible. They mistakenly though the Wii name would be enough. When my tech savvy nephew asked if the Wii U was just an add-on, I knew Nintendo had missed the boat. Now the system is a laughing stock despite the fact that it has more strong titles that both the other systems combined.

That leaves Sony, who is winning the console wars simply by NOT DOING ANYTHING STUPID. There is nothing great about the console or its library, but it's a powerful machine at a reasonable price. And they are selling like hotcakes. Maybe it's not so hard to win the console war after all.

Nintendo is battling extreme 'hardcore' media bias on one end and cheap disposable games on the other end.

Their marketing has been terrible yes, but that is not why they are failing. People do what they are told by their media, I could give you a 100 exp, but my post would not be approved, because mod knows best - for all of us.

Thank you Critic, absolutely. It's been a year or so and I still have seen no reason to upgrade to any of the new machines. I still joke with friends that the Dreamcast beats all of them, and so far I haven't found much off with that. I might get a Wii U somewhere down the line, but I usually wait until a console ends its run before I pursue it.

[QUOTE=videogamecritic]I was just thinking about how seriously lame this generation of gaming has been so far.

Microsoft has spent the entire year backtracking from bad decision after bad decision: Trying to kill the used game market, always-connected console, mandatory Kinect, overpriced system, ugly VGR design, etc, etc. They couldn't do anything right. Who was in charge of this Xbox division? Any real gamer could have seen this disaster brewing a mile away.

Nintendo actually has a very good console, but their marketing campaign (if it even exists) has been horrible. They mistakenly though the Wii name would be enough. When my tech savvy nephew asked if the Wii U was just an add-on, I knew Nintendo had missed the boat. Now the system is a laughing stock despite the fact that it has more strong titles that both the other systems combined.

That leaves Sony, who is winning the console wars simply by NOT DOING ANYTHING STUPID. There is nothing great about the console or its library, but it's a powerful machine at a reasonable price. And they are selling like hotcakes. Maybe it's not so hard to win the console war after all.

[/QUOTE]

It's not all bad though. At least there's the 3DS and a steady flow of nice indie and PC titles.

but it's a powerful machine at a reasonable price. And they are selling like hotcakes. Maybe it's not so hard to win the console war after all.

[/QUOTE]There's an analog here with software sales too. A bunch of companies have reported losses or problems and challenges this last year or two. Know who has record revenue this year? Take Two. A large part of this was revenue from GTA V and Bioshock Infinite. Those two games took years and years to develop, with no annualization. Just games that were worked on for a lot of money, for a long time, that were put out when they were ready. You know. How one would make a good game. And, as it turns out, good games sell a bunch of copies and make a lot of money! Who knew!?

And Square Enix had a really surprising hit this year: Bravely Default. How could that thing be a hit? That was a JRPG. A fairly traditional one. The JRPG genre is dead. No one wants to play that. That's why people don't make them. At least, that's the word from on high, isn't it? No one just wants a good ol' JRPG, so no one makes them. Then Square Enix makes one and realizes that they never really checked to see if people actually didn't want one. Turns out they did! Who knew? Well, except all the gamers who have been asking them to do that forever.

Jim Sterling did a great video on this phenomenon awhile ago. Companies convince themselves no money is to be made selling games people want, and they break their backs trying not to make that money.

[QUOTE=Segatarious]People do what they are told by their media[/QUOTE]

If that were true Microsoft would have just sold 12 million always connected, DRM ridden, new game only, amazing kinect is looking at you canoodling, fully tv integrated, ad targeted, all purpose new age next gen Xbox Ones to the smiling masses all playing Titanfall.